Absence costs employers €8.3 billion: half due to mental health issues

25 June 2025

The latest figures from the 2024 TNO Arbobalans report are clear: for employers, the costs of work-related absence rose to no less than €8.3 billion in 2023, an increase of more than 60% compared to 2015. It is worth mentioning that more than half of these costs are due to absence caused by psychosocial workload (PSA), such as stress at work, emotionally demanding work, and undesirable behaviour.

What is behind the rise in absence costs?

There are several reasons for the sharp increase compared to €5.1 billion in 2015:

Higher wages: it is becoming more expensive to continue paying wages during periods of absence because average salaries have risen.
More employees: the working population has grown, and with it the number of people taking sick leave.
Longer duration of sick leave: absenteeism due to psychological reasons in particular is becoming longer, averaging 63 days per period of absence.
More PSA-related absences: burnout symptoms among employees rose from 13% in 2015 to 19% in 2023. Among the self-employed, this rose from 7% to 11%.

Absenteeism due to psychological reasons is therefore not only the most persistent type of absence, but also the most costly (€4.9 billion). And in 75% of cases, the root cause is (partly) found in the workplace: excessive workloads, too little autonomy or conflicts.

High-risk sectors

The healthcare, education and hospitality sectors stand out in particular. Employees in these sectors report above-average levels of stressful and emotionally demanding work. It is no coincidence that these are also sectors with relatively high absenteeism rates. The impact of PSA on business continuity is also noticeable in these sectors.

Effective approach: start with a good RI&E for PSA

What can you do as an employer? The first step towards effectively addressing absenteeism due to psychological reasons is conducting a thorough risk assessment. However, experience shows that many organisations do not adequately focus their RI&E on the risks of psychosocial workload (PSA). This is a missed opportunity, because without insights, there can be no targeted action.

An up-to-date and in-depth RI&E with a specific focus on PSA clearly identifies workload, social safety, clarity of roles, autonomy and work-life balance. This not only reveals where the issues lie, but also provides direction for effective policy making and concrete interventions.

Interested or need more information?

If you would like to update your RI&E or find out more about the PSA RI&E, take a look at this page or get in touch with your contact person at HumanCapitalCare.